Asda has hired Carrefour’s former chief merchandising officer Jesús Lorente for a similar role as the Big 4 grocer undergoes a leadership overhaul.

The news comes a week after Asda announced that deputy chief executive Roger Burnley will replace current chief executive Sean Clarke from January 1.

Lorente will succeed Andrew Moore, who is stepping from the chief merchandising officer role in January after almost 10 years with Asda, three of which were in his current role.

Burnley and Lorente will form part of a new executive team that will work to continue the momentum of financial recovery that Clarke has brought about since Asda’s parent company Walmart parachuted him into the role in June 2016.

Lorente has already joined Asda and is in the process of being introduced to the business to ensure a smooth transition.

He first joined French retailer Carrefour in November 2009 as director of supply chain in its Spanish business.

He then chief merchandising officer for the company’s Spanish arm in December 2012 – a role he held until July this year.

Before Carrefour, Lorente’s career spent almost 20 years with Unilever in the UK, Spain and the US.

A brand new, cashier-free shop is set to open in Cork early next year, in what looks to be a world’s first.

The Irish Examiner reports retail technology agency Everseen is developing the store on French Church Street, which uses mobile technology, beacons, and other highly advanced techniques to allow customers to walk in, pick up what they want and simply walk out. The price of their messages will be applied to their account without any till or checkout interaction require.

Everseen, which works with some of the world’s top retailers in loss-prevention techniques, says the technology involves a lot more than simply removing the registers.

“0Line [Zero Line] gives offline retailers intelligence about their customers,” says Alan O’Herlihy, CEO of Everseen. “It allows them to respond to consumer behaviour and emotions, not just purchasing patterns.”

Amazon has been testing a similar store near its HQ in Seattle for several months, but it is yet to open to the public. Looks like there’s something of an arms race developing in the area of self-service.

O’Herlihy added that Everseen believes it can introduce the technology to “football stadium-sized” stores within the next two years.

The 60 second TV commercial is set in a magical Argos distribution centre where a troupe of Argos elves are helping Santa to deliver gifts across the country.

Created by CHI & Partners and directed by Gary Freedman, the advert aims to highlight Argos’s commitment to speedy delivery and its Fast Track same-day delivery service.

The action begins when a child’s long-awaited Christmas present, a Teksta voice-recognition robotic puppy, is found wandering the aisles of the distribution centre by an elf. The quick-thinking elf scans it in at the “elf station” to reveal its intended recipient on-screen whose family’s gifts are departing from gate nine. This leads to a blockbuster-style chase across the distribution centre in which the elf pulls out all the stops to ensure the robotic puppy makes it to the child in time for Christmas.

Argos is also giving three children the opportunity to feature in the advert. From Tuesday 7 November, parents can visit Argos’s Facebook and Twitter channels to submit an image of their child using the hashtag #ReadyForTakeOff. The chosen winners will appear on national TV in the Argos advert for a whole day each on Friday 10, Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 November.

In addition, parents will get a chance to see their child’s face in a personalised social media version of the advert by uploading their child’s photo on the Argos Facebook or Twitter sites.

Gary Kibble, marketing director at Argos, said: “We love this edge-of-your-seat, high-energy Christmas campaign, which aims to surprise and delight across all channels – showcasing Argos’s Fast Track delivery commitment to getting customers what they want, how and when they want it, faster than anyone else.

“We hope our super-swift, stop-at-nothing Argos Christmas elves help us once again to break the traditional retailer advertising mould by adding some excitement, energy and above all speed to the nation’s Christmases this year.”

Kibble said Argos will deliver 1.7 million items and process 27 million in-store transactions over the festive period.

The Argos ‘Ready For Take-Off’ advert forms part of a 360° campaign spanning TV, digital, print and in-store and social media activity.

South African startup MySidekick has launched its free Android-based shopping app across the country, offering users special deals from retailers such as Clicks, Dis-Chem and Volpes.

Incubated at the Nedbank Stellenbosch University LaunchLab business incubator, MySidekick has developed an application that provides users with relevant shopping deals and in 2015 secured a R4 million (US$280,000) staged investment from Stellenbosch-based technology funder and developer Alchemy-A.

“The user can personalise the app so that they only see specials of product categories they are interested in, and this can easily be changed or updated by the user. We then have proprietary algorithms that make sure there is a good variety of specials on display,” said MySidekick chief executive officer (CEO) Leonard Brewer.

“When a user arrives at a mall, they receive a notification reminding them that there are relevant specials for them, and they can then open the app from the notification to browse through them so they can decide which store to go to, to save some money.”

The aim of the app is to save the user time and money by showing them relevant retailer specials as they shop. On installation, the app will ask the user what they are interested in and then notify them of tailored specials when they arrive at a particular shopping destination.

“And it’s clever enough to know you’re not just passing by, it will only notify you once you have parked your car and are walking to the entrance,” said Brewer.

After 75 years in business, Dickey’s Barbecue Pit is going global. The nearly 600-unit chain has partnered with Middle Eastern hospitality group, Serenity Hospitality, to bring 45 Dickey’s locations to seven countries throughout the Middle East.

“Dickey’s has been in search for the right partner to take our brand international for some time now, and we truly believe we have found that in the folks from Serenity Hospitality, Roland Dickey Jr., CEO of Dickey’s Capital Group, said in an interview with FastCasual. “Their company is an acclaimed hospitality group in the Middle East with experience in the fast casual industry and we look forward to working with them to bring Dickey’s to the Middle East.”

Dickey’s chose the Middle East because of its heavy boom in commerce and hospitality.

“Dubai and Abu Dhabi particularly are two very popular travel destinations that we look forward to expanding in,” Dickey said.

Although the menu will be slightly different compared to the American units, it will, of course, include the chain’s Texas-style barbecue.

“However, we have had to modify it appropriately due to the region we are expanding in,”Dickey said. “For example, pork is typically not consumed in the Middle East, because of this we plan to substitute our pork options for lamb.”

Serenity Hospitality is led by CEO Youssef El Habbal, who has more than 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry with a heavy focus on concept development and franchise operations.

“At Serenity Hospitality, LLC we take pride in owning innovative Food and Beverage concepts. After doing much research of high-quality American brands, we found that Dickey’s business model, menu options and future plans aligned perfectly with what we were looking for,” El Habbal said in a company press release. “A company’s values and heritage are extremely important to us, and Dickey’s long family-owned history along with their promise to serve only the best food to their guests meet the values that we look for in a partner.”

The 45 international Dickey’s Barbecue Pit locations are slated to opened in seven countries throughout the Middle East, including United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman. The first locations are planned to open in 2018 in the UAE.

Celesio UK said the remaining members of its board would manage the business “whilst a successor is sought”.

Brian Tyler, chairman of the management board of McKesson Europe – which owns Celesio – said Mr Tobin had “built a strong leadership team for Celesio UK”, and added “his warm and engaging personality made him many friends across community pharmacy and beyond”.

“I am grateful for the dedication that Cormac has shown over the last few years and his leadership through an ever-changing external environment,” Mr Tyler said.

Galeries Lafayette has unveiled a new flagship store at the heart of the new extension to the Carré Sénart shopping centre in Paris. The opening marks the first significant addition to the Galeries Lafayette network of 56 stores in France in the past few years, and the new store concept is intended to be experience-led, fully omni-channel and firmly anchored in its local environment on the edge of the Forest of Sénart.

Spread over two floors, the store is based on standards of hospitality and services that provide a harmonious blend of physical and digital innovation, with comfortable relaxation areas, intuitive signage and sleek, modern furnishings. Remaining loyal to its strategic positioning, Galeries Lafayette offers a selection of prestigious brands spanning fashion, beauty, accessories, shoes and leather goods, in many cases some as the exclusive retailer within the shopping centre.

The 6,000 sq m store enables shoppers to enjoy a stroll through a natural setting, where products are displayed in spaces such as cabins, hunting lodges or kiosks. It features a monumental glazed facade and a light well at the heart of the store. French artist Julien Colombier has created a major artwork on either side of the facade, influenced by both plants and the urban environment, recreating the edge of a forest.

The artwork opens up into the store, where a grove of life-sized trees catches the attention of visitors, and is another nod to the forest-inspired interior of the store beyond.

In the woodland-inspired and modern space, the codes of the forest are found in product racks and displays, showcasing the retailer’s collections. The store is bathed in natural light, thanks to the glazed facade and particially transparent ceiling. Galeries Lafayette Carré Sénart has been designed to reinvent the department store experience by offering customers open plan spaces and different departments marked out by woodland-inspired furniture, created directly by sustainable funiture designer, Agence Forêt.

The store has been designed around both the physical and digital experience. On the first floor, a 150 sq m space is dedicated entirely to services, including e-reservations and Click & Collect. Following a number of pilot projects, the Digital Showroom is now available at Carré Sénart. This makes it possible to offer a very wide range of up to 100 products in a small, physical space. Usually used for leather goods, the 40 sq m area displays a selection of four luggage brands made available to customers thanks to a digital counter. Customers can see and try the demonstration produt and then, by placing it on the dedicated counter, benefit from a wide range of options (size, colour etc) and buy it online. Orders are collected using the store’s Click & Collect service within 24 hours, or delivered to the customer’s home.

The Carré Sénart store is also running a pilot project in omni-channel training of sales advisors. Staff are armed with mobile tablets to help customers throughout the entire shopping experience, including managing stock levels in store, providing a constant link with the website and giving proactive advice when trying items. Mobile payment points are also available throughout the store.

Retail giant Majid Al Futtaim says City Centre Al Jazira will be its first in the UAE capital

Construction work has started on a new AED1.4 billion ($380 million) lifestyle destination in Abu Dhabi, with an opening slated for 2021.

An official greound-breaking ceremony has taken place for City Centre Al Jazira which will include 153 stores, a Carrefour Hypermarket, a Magic Planet family entertainment destination, a fitness centre, as well as indoor and alfresco dining choices.

Total leasable area is expected to be 80,500 sq m within a built-up area of 215,000 sq m, said operator Majid Al Futtaim in a statement.

The project is a joint venture between Majid Al Futtaim and Al Jazira Sports and Cultural Club.

“We believe in empowering our community, and we are thrilled to partner with Majid Al Futtaim which will allow us to have the opportunity to have a major role in building a new lifestyle destination in the heart of Abu Dhabi,” said Saeed Mohamed Bin Butti Al Qebaisi, chairman of Al Jazira Investment.

He said the new super-regional mall is scheduled to open its doors in early 2021 and is part of Majid Al Futtaim’s plan to increase its total investment in the UAE by AED30 billion by 2026, taking its total investment in the country to AED48 billion.

In addition to City Centre Al Jazira, the company recently announced the up-coming My City Centre Masdar, set to open by 2019 in the capital.

In the three months to 29 October online sales climbed by 13.2% but sales in the retailer’s stores were down 7.7%.

In a statement, Next said the lower clearance rates seen in its summer end-of-season sale this year had continued into the third quarter, both in the mid-season sale and its clearance operation. As a result total sales, including markdown sales, were up 0.8% in the three month period and down 1.2% for the year to date.

Next said its sales performance has remained “extremely volatile” and is highly dependent on the weather. In August and September sales were significantly up on last year as cooler temperatures improved sales of warmer weight stock.

Looking ahead, Next said the volatility was making it difficult to determine any underlying sales trend but added: “We believe the most reliable guide to sales for the balance of the year are the full price sales for the year to date, which are down -0.3%. This number is at the mid-point of the sales guidance we gave in September and so we are maintaining the central profit guidance we issued at that time, albeit we are narrowing the range.”

Next now expects its full year pre-tax profit to be between £692 million and £742 million compared to a previous guidance of £687 million to £747 million.

The chief of Uniqlo’s parent company Fast Retailing is to retire from the company he founded when he turns 70 in 2019.

Tadashi Yanai told the Japanese financial publication The Nikkei on Friday he is due to retire, but will continue as chairman of the company, stating “there is no such thing as retirement for founders.”

According to the publication, Yanai said a successor should have the physical strength and technological know-how of young managers to make quick decisions and keep up with the ever-changing fashion industry. “Young people must handle actual management,” he said.

“The next CEO will be the most suited person among our current executive officers,” he explained. Fast Retailing has over 40 executive officers, two of whom are Yanai’s children, but he already has denied that either will be his successor.

Fast Retailing in 2002 appointed Genichi Tamatsuka, an executive with experience working at Asahi Glass to take over as president from Yanai. But Yanai reassumed the presidency three years later after earnings flatlined and stronger leadership was needed to guide the company through a review of its businesses. In 2013, Yanai also reneged on his promise to retire as president at 65.

The retailer’s earnings are recovering, with higher revenue and profit for the fiscal year ended in August. The brand is gaining more recognition in China and Southeast Asia thanks in part to aggressive store openings. Though Fast Retailing continues to bleed red ink in the U.S. market, overseas operations are growing overall.

But the company remains far from its sales goal of 3 trillion yen (26.5 billion dollars). To that end, Yanai aims to make Fast Retailing into a global and digital business “that turns information into products,” a shift that depends on the progress of its information technology strategy.

Hugo Boss has launched its first digital showroom in Berlin, Germany, marking a shift in the company’s strategy.

The German fashion brand presented its Hugo pre-fall collection for 2018 at a pop-up space in Berlin to showcase its digital showroom last week. Via a 65 inch touchscreen, which resembles a table, viewers were able to browse through the entire collection, go through numerous colour and combination options and directly order pieces from the collection.

Specially developed for Hugo Boss, the dedicated application was developed in a short period of time using the ‘scrum method’ – a technique which uses a form of agile project management to enable the rapid visualization of solutions for complex issues within a flexible framework.

The launch of the digital showroom signals a change in Hugo Boss order system – from now on the German fashion brand will no longer prepare complete collections of physical samples for its order phase. The collection, including the entire range of available colours and combinations options, will be offered to customers exclusively in digital form.

Hugo Boss aims to roll out its digital showroom to its global market in 2018 following its launch in Berlin.

The brainchild of Mr. Mohammed Al Habtoor, Vice-Chairman and CEO of Al Habtoor Group, the idea of building the luxury boutique was born over a year ago and after consultations with Bentley UK, the boutique opened on 27th October, making it a powerful addition to the whole Al Habtoor Polo Resort and Club. Bentley has long been associated with Polo in the UAE. Over the years it has been sponsoring many high-profile polo events, including The Dubai Open, which is played at The Al Habtoor Polo Resort & Club.

On Thursday the retail-led healthcare group posted a 15.4% rise in operating profit to R1.8bn driven by strong health and beauty sales that grew 14.7%.

Opening 111 stores, including 80 through the outsourcing agreement with the Netcare Group, bumped up its store footprint to 622. Its pharmacy network was increased to 473.

During the 2017 financial year, the retailer’s cash inflows from operations exceeded R2bn for the first time.

Clicks plans to invest R680m during the 2018 financial year to add 25-30 new stores, and about 35 pharmacies, among other things.

CEO David Kneale said the company was confident it would reach its new store target.

Only 50% of households in SA lived within 5km of a Clicks store, presenting a gap for growth and convenience. “We believe the faster growth we experienced in the beauty and pharmacy divisions will lead to a 6.5%-7.5% growth in the medium term,” said Kneale.

36One Asset Management equity analyst Daniel Isaacs said the company’s targeted store footprint had jumped from 600 to 900 over the past few years as it spotted certain areas growing more than predicted.

But he warned that if today’s economic environment continued, it would negatively affect the growth plans of Clicks and all other retailers.

“You can be a very well run business, but you can’t compete against or escape the environment,” Isaacs said. Electus Fund Managers analyst Damon Buss said that because of income inequalities not everyone could afford to shop at Clicks.

While the company would probably meet the target it would take a significant time.

Online shopping would have long-term effects on foot traffic while store location would remain a key issue.

“You run the risk of cannibalising some of your current store base or you put them in a less optimal location,” Buss said.

While retail health and beauty sales, including Clicks and the franchise brands of The Body Shop, GNC, and Claire, increased 14.7%, the Musica business performed poorly. Musica’s profit in the year under review was R28m lower than a year earlier but Clicks chief financial officer Michael Fleming said the company was managing the Musica brand for shareholder value.

However, the group would be open to selling the music and gaming retail chain to any suitor ” with a chequebook that won’t bounce”.

Clicks ClubCard increased active membership to 7-million, with the loyalty programme accounting for 77.4% of sales in Clicks stores.

Clicks declared a final dividend of R2.34 per share,

taking the total for the financial year to R3.22, an 18.4% increase on the previous year.

The company’s share price closed 0.55% down at R154.35 on the JSE on Thursday.

London – The man who has been credited with transforming Burberry into the UK’s leading luxury fashion house is set to leave his role. President and Chief Creative Officer at Burberry, Christopher Bailey, is set to leave the company by the end of 2018, marking the end of his 17-year tenure.

The heritage fashion house announced Bailey’s impending departure on Tuesday morning, as Burberry is set to begin the next decade of its journey under the supervision of its new leader, Chief Executive Officer Marco Gobbetti. Bailey, who is set to pursue new, unnamed creative projects, will remain on board as President and Chief Creative Officer until March 31, 2018, after which he will step down from the company board. He will, however, remain with the company in a transitional advisory role, offering his “full support” to CEO Gobbetti and the rest of the team until he finally exits the fashion house.

“The decision to leave was not an easy one”

Christopher Bailey, President and Chief Creative Officer at Burberry

“It has been the great privilege of my working life to be at Burberry, working alongside and learning from such an extraordinary group of people over the last 17 years,” said Bailey in a statement. “Burberry encapsulates so much of what is great about Britain. As an organization, it is creative, innovative and outward looking. It celebrates diversity and challenges received wisdoms. It is over 160 years old, but it has a young spirit. It is part of the establishment, but it is always changing, and always learning. It has been a truly inspiring place to work and the decision to leave was not an easy one.”

“I do truly believe, however, that Burberry’s best days are still ahead of her and that the company will go from strength to strength with the strategy we have developed and the exceptional talent we have in place led by Marco. I would like to thank all my colleagues as well as Sir John Peace and the Board for all their support and faith in me over the years. I am excited to pursue new creative projects but remain fully committed to the future success of this magnificent brand and to ensuring a smooth transition.”

Christopher Bailey to exit joint role as President and Chief Creative Officer at Burberry

Since joining the team at Burberry back in 2001 as design director, Bailey has become one of the main driving forces behind the luxury fashion house’s transformation. Within the span of 17 years, Burberry has grown from a small-licensed outerwear business into one of the industry’s leading global luxury brands, best known for its trench coats and innovative marketing campaigns. Together with Angela Ahrendts, former CEO at Burberry, Bailey established the Burberry Foundation, a dedicated initiative to help young people achieve their goals. Later in October 2013, he was named as Ahrendts successor, ahead of her departure to Apple in May 2014. He remained in his current role as Chief Creative Officer and became the company’s first CEO and creative head.

In his joint role, Bailey is said to have continued to push the boundaries of creation and innovation at Burberry, leading the way for the brand’s ongoing elevation and turning the luxury fashion house into the industry’s digital leader and overseeing the reinvention of the company’s design and internal structure. He was the mastermind behind Burberry’s key flagship store on Regent Street and built a highly talented and experience creative team to continue the brand’s story. However, in July 2016, the company announced that Marco Gobbetti, CEO of Céline, would be the next CEO of Burberry, taking over the reins from Bailey in 2017, who transitioned into the role of President while remaining in his role as Chief Creative Officer.

p> Bailey worked together with the Board to create a new leadership structure before he was succeeded by Gobbetti this July. Since this summer, Gobbetti and Bailey are said to have worked together to develop a strategy for the next chapter of Burberry’s growth, sharing a strong ambition to drive the success of the Burberry brand while strengthening the leadership team. Gobbetti understands and supports Bailey’s decision to leave his joint role at Burberry, and will now begin the process of finding a successor for his role. “Burberry has undergone an incredible transformation since 2001 and Christopher has been instrumental to the Company’s success in that period,” said Gobbetti.

“We have a clear vision for the next chapter to accelerate the growth and success of the Burberry brand”

Marco Gobbetti, Chief Executive Officer, Burberry

“While I am sad not to have the opportunity to partner with him for longer, the legacy he leaves and the exceptional talent we have at Burberry gives me enormous confidence in our future. We have a clear vision for the next chapter to accelerate the growth and success of the Burberry brand and I am excited about the opportunity ahead for our teams, our partners, and our shareholders.” Sir John Peace, Chairman at Burberry thanked Bailey for his part in transforming Burberry, adding that he leaves the company in “the very best of hands. with a strong team and culture in place, led by Marco as CEO.”

“I have total confidence that Marco’s vision and leadership, with the excellent management team in place, will keep Burberry on the forefront creatively, digitally and financially, creating further value for shareholders in the next exciting stage of our evolution,” added Peace. Full details concerning all payments made to Bailey concerning his role as director will be revealed in the Directors’ Remuneration Report in the company’s annual report for the year ended March 31, 2018, added Burberry. In the past company shareholders have voted against the luxury fashion houses remuneration report concerning pay deals for Bailey. However, Bailey has decided to surrender various awards held by him under the company’s share plan as he is set to step down from the board and exit the company by the end of 2018.

Following the announcement concerning Bailey’s exit, company shares were down 1.46 percent at 10:00 am, making the company’s stock the worst performer on a rising FTSE 100 index. Bailey’s exit comes after a period of rapid expansion, during which the company has struggled with stagnate saled over the recent years. Bailey is set to leave big shoes to fill however, notes Charlotte Pearce, Retail Analyst at Globaldata. “Since becoming Creative Director in 2004, Bailey has contributed to total revenue growth of 2 billion pounds and has helped to regenerate the brand, turning it back into the aspirational, iconic label that it once was,” commented Pearce.

“With just over a year until Bailey leaves, there is plenty of time for Marco Gobbetti, who took over as CEO in July, to find the right candidate to fill Bailey’s shoes. It is crucial that Burberry finds someone with respect for the brand’s British heritage but is able to further evolve the label creatively and bring it into a new era.”

Kappahl has announced the appointment of Peter Andersson as the company’s new CFO, effective April 2018. The company said in a statement that Andersson brings many years as CFO of AB Lindex, where he currently is director of expansion.

“I am very pleased with the recruitment of Peter. His extensive expertise and experience from retail will be a great asset to Kappahl”, said Danny Feltmann, Kappahl’s President and CEO in a media release.

From April 2018, Andersson will lead and develop the financial work of the Kappahl Group. The company added that Andersson has many years of international experience from the retail business from strategic and operational perspective as well as qualified work in financial and risk management. He has previously worked for ICA Handlarna AB.

Kappahl was founded in Gothenburg in 1953 and is a leading fashion chain in the Nordic region with 370 Kappahl and Newbie stores, including an online platform, in Sweden, Norway, Finland, Poland and Great Britain. The company’s sales for 2016/2017 totalled 4.9 billion Swedish krona (0.5 billion dollars).

He will succeed current chief executive Sean Clarke who has held the position since July 2016. In a statement, the company said Clarke will be “taking some time out” but will “remain engaged” with Walmart.

Burnley returned to Asda as chief operating officer and deputy chief executive in October 2016 and at the time was identified as a future chief executive.

Dave Cheesewright, chief executive of Walmart International, said: “Roger was purposefully brought back to Asda to partner with Sean ahead of the transition to Roger taking up the position of CEO. He and Sean have worked as a great team and I’m really confident in Roger’s ability to continue building upon our returning momentum.”

Clarke will remain Asda’s chief executive until 31 December and will work closely with Burnley to ensure a smooth transition.

Cheesewright added: “After more than 21 years with the company, Sean has worked across five international markets including serving as president and CEO of Walmart China and obviously here in the UK too. He’s continually shown the ability to lead critical transformation and the last 15 months are no exception.”

Asda chief executive Sean Clarke will stand down in January, barely 18 months after taking on the role.

The supermarket chain, a subsidiary of US giant Walmart, has struggled over the past few years, losing market share to discount rivals Aldi and Lidl.

But it insisted Mr Clarke was departing because he wanted to take some time out, and that his deputy Roger Burnley was always being lined up as a successor.

Dave Cheesewright, chief executive of Walmart International, said: “Roger was purposefully brought back to Asda to partner with Sean ahead of the transition to Roger taking up the position of CEO.

Mr Clarke joined Asda from Walmart’s Chinese division last year

“He and Sean have worked as a great team and I’m really confident in Roger’s ability to continue building on our return to momentum.”

Mr Clarke has spent 21 years in various international roles at Walmart and was chief executive of its Chinese division before taking the top job at Asda last July. He replaced Andy Clarke, who had struggled to maintain the retailer’s revenues amid intense competition and falling food prices.

He is expected to return to another role at Walmart after taking some time out, an Asda spokesman said.

Clive Black, an analyst at Shore Capital, told The Daily Telegraph it was a “surprise” Mr Clarke was leaving given his relatively short tenure. However, he added: “Roger Burnley is a very experienced UK grocer, something that Sean has lacked.”

Mr Burnley was previously director of supply at Asda but left to become Matalan’s supply chain director in 2002. He later held the same role at Sainsbury’s before returning to Asda as deputy chief executive and chief operations officer in October 2016.

Mr Black said: “To take Asda forward they do need an experienced British supermarket general. Roger Burnley is up against [Tesco chief executive] Dave Lewis, [Morrison’s] David Potts and [Sainsbury’s] Mike Coupe in the larger store segment and they’ve been around a long time.”

Reduced funding, higher business rates and the apprenticeship levy created ‘challenging market conditions’

Lloyds Pharmacy has announced it will close nearly 200 stores across England because of changes in government policy, with its parent company also blaming funding cuts and the apprenticeship levy.

In an internal letter to staff Cormac Tobin, the managing director of Lloyds Pharmacy’s owner, Celesio UK, said around 190 pharmacies would cease to trade through a combination of closures and disinvestments.

The leaked internal memo to staff, which was verified by a spokesman for Celesio UK, said the business had been hit by pharmacy funding cuts, as well as higher business rates and the apprenticeship levy, which had made “market conditions challenging”.

“Community pharmacy needs to adapt to the changing requirements of patients and the NHS, indeed it should be part of the solution to an overstretched health service,” Tobin said in the memo.

“To achieve this, we need a new operational framework that creates a thriving pharmacy network that continues to offer essential integrated healthcare and is rooted in local communities.”

The number of staff who could be affected by the closures was not confirmed by a spokeswoman for Celesio UK, who said current employees may be moved to other locations. But some pharmacists have taken to social media to warn of hundreds of job losses.

Aisha Adnan, a locum pharmacist, posted: “A branch [on] average has five staff and that equates to roughly 1,000 staff being laid off, plus so many pharmacists and locum pharmacists [will] lose their jobs and patients [will] lose their trusted services. This is not the picture of health.”

Thorrun Govind, a pharmacist in north-west England, said: “This is going to impact the most vulnerable patients and, with the GP crisis and pressures on the NHS, the funding cuts were most unwelcome.

“Patients need an accessible healthcare professional to provide advice, medicines and so much more to reduce pressure on other NHS resources. The closure of these pharmacies is disappointing when pharmacists should be supported to provide much more for the NHS.

“I would like to see independent pharmacists prescribers enabled to allow pharmacies on the high street to become triage centres not a reduction in pharmacies.”

Tobin said the company would be taking steps to support staff and minimise disruption for patients.

Julie Cooper, the shadow minister for community care, described the decision as “a devastating blow for Lloyds Pharmacy staff and their patients right across the country. The government is taking hundreds of millions of pounds of support away from pharmacies and now we see that it is patients who will pay the price.”

Cooper urged ministers to outline plans to support “the hundreds of Lloyds Pharmacy jobs that are now at risk” and explain what support will be put in place for patients reliant on their service. “The Tories are prioritising saving money over care. They cannot just expect elderly patients to get their prescriptions via an online service, without any support with their medication,” she said.

A spokeswoman for No 10 said there were measures in place to ensure people could access a pharmacy. She said: “There are almost 12,000 private pharmacies in England and these closures make up just 1.6% of the number. We don’t have full information on the announcement as yet, but we do make sure that patients can access pharmacists where they need to.”

M&S clothing boss leaves weeks after starting new role while John Lewis director quits

A senior boss is leaving M&S’s clothing division

Marks & Spencer’s clothing recovery has been dealt a fresh blow after one of its senior directors quit while John Lewis’s boardroom is facing a reshuffle with the departure of a senior director.

Industry experts said that the departures were fresh signs of the challenges faced by retailers who are struggling to adapt to changing shopping habits in a tough environment.

Tom Athron, who most recently led John Lewis’s new venture business, is leaving, having lost out to Paula Nickolds earlier this year in the race to replace Andy Street.

Mr Athron has been with the partnership since 2005 as head of financial strategy before becoming buying director of Waitrose and finance director of Waitrose. After being overlooked for the John Lewis role the former investment director has been pushing John Lewis’s expansion into home services, such as approved tradesman who visit customers’ homes.

Paula Nickolds is now boss of John Lewis

Friends of Mr Athron said that he had resigned and was now looking for opportunities in digital retail after being pipped to the post by Ms Nickolds.

Meanwhile Jo Jenkins, who was made Marks & Spencer’s director of clothing earlier this month, is leaving to become chief executive of casual fashion chain White Stuff.

Her departure comes less than a month after the arrival of her boss Jill McDonald, who joined Marks & Spencer from Halfords to run its non-food business.

There is speculation that Ms Jenkins had wanted to be in charge of the division, but the retailer felt this would be too much of a leap and M&S wanted to recruit someone from outside the business with a strong operational background, rather than in just buying.

Ms Jenkins is leaving M&S to become CEO of White Stuff

Ms McDonald has no fashion retail experience but her stint running the UK arm of fast food chain McDonald’s is said to have given her a sharp awareness of how to use customer data.

With Ms Jenkins gone, Ms McDonald will be able to have a greater say in shaping her team rather than inheriting one. An M&S insider played down the chances of any disruption to the crucial Christmas trading period and said that festive lines had already been decided by July.

Stemming the steady decline in clothing sales remains a priority for M&S, with chief executive Steve Rowe only recently relinquishing control of the division. Mr Rowe has previously said the retailer gave customers “too many reasons not to shop with us” and has tried to wean the company off a destructive discounting cycle.

He has also set up a panel of retail shareholders who feed into the company on their views in an effort to address customer complaints about ill-fitting clothes, poor quality and excessively young ranges.

The efforts seem to be paying off so far, with M&S reporting a 1.2pc drop in like-for-like sales in the 13 weeks to July 1, compared to the 5.9pc plunge a year earlier.

Ms Jenkins, who has a six-month notice period, started at M&S as a range selector in 1987 before spending 15 years at rival Next. She returned in 2013 as director of lingerie and beauty, before taking responsibility for womenswear two years later.

“We’re delighted for Jo – she’s been a real talent here at M&S, which is reflected in the progress she has made both professionally and for the business,” the retailer said.

“Becoming chief executive at a company like White Stuff is a natural next step for her. We wish her all the very best with her new role.”

Privately owned White Stuff has 131 shops and 53 concessions, and turned over £153.6m last year. Ms Jenkins will replace Jeremy Seigal, formerly CEO of Superdrug-owner AS Watson UK, who announced his intention to stand down in July.

M&S stock dipped 0.6pc in morning trade but recouped its losses and was trading flat at 344.50p by early

The small format shop in Melbourne is the first site operated with Debenhams’ franchise partner Pepkor, which is part of the Steinhoff Group.

Spanning 3,600 square metres across two floors, the store is the first of its kind for Debenhams and marks a shift away from the traditional department store format in Australia.

The store features a mix of clothing including fashion from the retailer’s collaborations with UK designers such as Jasper Conran, Julien Macdonald, Preen, Savannah Miller, Matthew Williamson and Jenny Packham. In-store services include a style suite, beauty rooms and a café.

David Smith, Debenhams’ managing director of international, said: “International expansion in key markets is a strategic priority for the business. More than 20 million shoppers visit our 175 UK and ROI stores each year and this includes a huge number of Australian consumers.

“Shoppers in Australia spend more than $5.1 billion on fashion and $8 billion on beauty products a year – add that to the fact that we know that our offering resonates and the next logical step for the business was to open a store in Australia.”

The new store in St Collins Lane has joined a portfolio of 243 Debenhams stores across 28 countries worldwide.

Dubai Land Department (DLD) on Monday announced that the total value of real estate transactions for the first nine months of 2017 reached AED204 billion ($55.5 billion), achieved through 52,170 deals.

It said there were a total of 37,633 transactions for land, residential units and buildings, generating a value of over AED88 billion.

There were also 11,699 mortgage transactions worth AED102 billion and 2,838 other transactions worth AED14 billion.

Sultan Butti bin Mejren, director general of Dubai Land Department, said: “The data clearly shows an increasing demand across all property categories, including land plots for various forms of real estate development, as well as buildings and residential units, which means that we are attracting a wide variety of investors.”

He did not give a year-on-year comparison.

Bin Mejren added: “We expect the market to remain on this upward trajectory of sustained growth, and to see demand continuing to diversify across various real estate categories. The momentum of the market is being driven and sustained by several factors but particularly the upcoming launch of Expo 2020 Dubai.”

The latest DLD report shows that the land category attracted AED143.40 billion worth of investment, achieved from 11,169 transactions across sales, mortgages and other transaction categories. Building sales generated 5,014 transactions with a total value of AED12.72 billion, while 36,000 transactions for residential units of all types crossed the AED48.77 billion mark.

The report also revealed the top ten real estate sales areas in Dubai, with Burj Khalifa taking first place in terms of value with 1,650 transactions worth AED6.239 billion.

Business Bay followed in second place with 2,754 transactions worth AED5.570 billion, while Dubai Marina was ranked third place with 2,596 transactions totalling AED5.357 billion in value.

In terms of mortgages, Palm Jumeirah topped the list with 578 transactions exceeding AED11.38 billion in value, followed by Business Bay and Dubai Marina.

He will join the audit and remuneration committees and will become chairman of the audit committee in January 2018 when Mark Rolfe steps down from the Debenhams board.

With 30 years retail experience, Adams is a former finance director and deputy chief executive of House of Fraser and has also been chairman of Jessops and Moss Bros and a non-executive director at HMV.

He is currently chairman of Conviviality and a non-executive director at Halfords.

Sir Ian Cheshire, chairman of Debenhams, said: “We are delighted to welcome David Adams to Debenhams. He has had a long and distinguished career in the retail and consumer goods industries. His knowledge of the consumer and leisure sectors as well as his financial credentials will be a great addition to the board.”

Hermès has opened ‘Through The Walls’, an immersive exhibition of the French luxury label’s home universe created especially for Singapore.

Showing at Hermès’ Liat Towers flagship store on Orchard Road, the world-first Hermès home exhibition will run from 7 to 29 October 2017.

In a bid to showcase its new collections for the home, under the artistic direction of Charlotte Macaux Perelman and Alexis Fabry, Hermès has tapped Parisian architecture firm RDAI to conceptualize the sleek space in Singapore.

The new outfit reflects the new line’s “functionality and beauty, rigour and fantasy,” an extension that hopes to resonate with Asian clients.

As such, the Hermès Singapore flagship has undertaken a striking reinvention, allowing customers to become fixated on furniture, and actually touch and feel the homewares.

“Through the Walls is an installation that sees spaces metamorphosed: architecture within architecture, a home within a home; the store becomes a place to live,” explained the Paris house, in a press release.

As well as retailing the interiors pieces – which include exquisitely crafted tableware, handcrafted wooden furniture pieces, and wrought leather accessories, and bespoke items such as a scarf cabinet, wallpaper and lighting – Through The Walls will also offer interactive workshops organised and available to the public.

Marking the new collection and pop-up, Hermès has also released a short film on its website. Entitled “Poetics Mechanics,” it features the brand’s objects in a personified manner, highlighting the form, material and function of each piece.

This new homeware focus comes on the back of the Hermes’ store revamp in 2016. Reopened in May 2017, clients are now privy to a much bigger space, with a devotion to furniture and home accessories.

The sudden focus on home lines has been sweeping luxury retail in recent weeks.

This month, Gucci announced and launched its first-ever homewares collection, while New York jewellery Tiffany & Co. will unveil its first home collections under its new artistic director, this November.

Daa, the operator of Dublin airport, has confirmed the main retail area in the departures lounge of terminal two at the airport is set to be revamped.

Tender documents seen by DFNIonline show daa is looking for a panel of six construction companies to work on the refit, which will include the fit out of a 1,350sq m duty-free store, over the next three years. The panel of construction companies will bid for the work in the airport’s retail areas as it arises in the coming years.

The work will primarily take in Aer Rianta International (ARI)’s The Loop outlet in the terminal. A spokesman for the airport operator confirmed the work was initially planned for ARI’s directly operated stores, but that other third-party concessionaires in the terminal can decide to use a firm from the panel if they wish to refurbish their stores.

A two-phase project

Phase one of the initial project will see a new 410sq m liquor store added to the terminal for ARI and five new concession retail units developed. The concession units will be a 60sq m sunglasses store, a 60sq m luggage store, an 80sq m watches/jewellery store and two fashion stores (60sq m and 80sq m).

The main part of the second phase of the works will see the contractors fit out a new 1,350sq m duty-free store for ARI. Two direct retail fashion units (60sq m and 80sq m) will also be fitted out and the existing Irish Memories unit will have a soft refurbishment.

The refurbishment works will be the €600m ($706m) terminal’s first major upgrade since its opening in 2010.

Luxury men’s fashion and accessories brand Alfred Dunhill has opened a new store in Beijing.

Nestled on Jianguo Road in the Chaoyang District, the latest China branch is located on Level 2 of Beijing’s SKP Shopping Centre. It features Dunhill’s famous retail Home design concept: elegant, sophisticated and masculine, with design accents that mimic Dunhill’s flagship store in London.

Taking the store count in Beijing to four (including two outlet stores), the new flagship offers the complete range of Dunhill products for men, including ready-to-wear, bespoke suiting, leather goods, and accessories, in which it started out producing first as a saddler back in England in 1893.

Nowadays, Dunhill is a division of Richemont, the Swiss-based, South African-owned group that is the third largest luxury conglomerate in the world. Dunhill, which owns a global chain of some 70 boutiques, is today located across every continent in most major cities.

In bid to bolster its global sales reach, Dunhill in early 2017 recruited Mark Weston as its new creative director, poaching him from Burberry.

After the showing of his Spring 2018 collection in London in June, Weston spoke to reporters about the “international” direction that he wished to take the quintessentially British brand.

“What I want for Dunhill is to be relevant. To make great clothing, for our times. To be British, but with an international outlook,” Weston said, after his June menswear show in London.

The new Dunhill store opening follows a string of store closures in China by the British luxury brand last year. According to the latest report by the investment research and management company Bernstein, Dunhill — along with fellow Briton Burberry — reported the most store closures in China between July 2016 and July 2017.

For the twelve month period China witnessed 62 net closures of luxury brand stores, the largest number observed by the research firm compared to other significant markets.

“The cooperation between Viplux and Marc Jacobs is a testament to Viplux’s expertise in understanding how to “become one” with the spirit of the specific brand, and to match that with market growth,” said vip.com co-founder, Arthur Hong.

Vip.com launched in 2008 its first foray into the luxury brands e-commerce field with Viplux. Marc Jacobs is among several fashion labels to open flagship stores on Viplux, including Armani, Versace, Salvatore Ferragamo, Diesel, Roberto Cavalli, Sergio Rossi and Trussardi.

Womenswear brand Galvan is set to open its debut retail concept, which will comprise of a showroom, bridal atelier, office, and archive space for the independent label.

Located at Clarendon Cross, Notting Hill, the studio will allow customer to purchase current collection, pre-order from next collection, as well as place orders from Galvan’s archive of previous collections, ahead of the service being launched online next year.

The studio will also be a bridal atelier for its upcoming bridal collection, which will offer “effortless, timeless and clean” options for all kinds of weddings from civil ceremony to late night party to daytime brunch, the brand states on its website, as well as looks for bridesmaids.

“Our philosophy is to put the customer at the core of everything we do, and to make the shopping experience as easy as possible,” said Paul O’Regan, chief executive officer at Galvan. “Galvan Studios provide the antidote to anonymous shopping. Intimate and transparent, these are spaces which give customers insight into the brand and its vision. We are excited to offer a suite of services that truly address the shopping desires and habits of our London customers.”

In addition, the studio can assist with complimentary fittings for online purchases, as well as offer free home delivery for any purchases made in the studio. Additional services launching includes complimentary fittings at home for up to 8 garments, with purchases only being charge after fitting.

London-label Galvan opens ‘studio’ retail concept

The womenswear label known its eveningwear as worn by A-list stars including Emma Watson and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, has also confirmed that has plans to open further studios in New York and Los Angeles.

London-based Galvan launched in 2014 by four women from the worlds of fashion and contemporary art, Anna-Christin Haas, Sola Harrison, Carolyn Hodler, and Katherine Holmgren.

The U.K. retail industry’s Brexit-linked turmoil deepened as J Sainsbury Plc said it would cut as many as 2,000 jobs, Zalando SE said the market is losing attractiveness and rival online fashion site Asos Plc discussed contingency plans.

Sainsbury’s move follows Tesco Plc, which announced 1,200 head-office job cuts in June. Asos, which sells clothing and accessories online, said Tuesday it may handle more of its distribution activities out of Germany if the U.K. falls out of the European customs union. That could put a damper on growth prospects for its 4,000-employee warehouse in Barnsley, England (a town where 68 percent of voters favored Brexit), although the company is continuing to invest in the site for now.

Brexit is heaping more upheaval on an already embattled industry. The country’s grocers have been grappling with discount rivals and higher staffing costs, while fashion retailers struggle against consumers’ preference to spend their disposable income on leisure activities rather than clothing.

The pound’s decline since the Brexit vote has pushed up sourcing costs: U.K. inflation climbed to its highest rate in more than five years in September, led by food and transport. And the risk of the U.K. falling out of the customs union leaves retailers wondering how they will be able to stock their shelves amid backlogs at ports.

Zalando, a German online clothing retailer that’s Europe’s biggest response so far to Amazon.com Inc., said Wednesday that Britain’s decision to leave the European Union is weighing on the market’s prospects.

“We would like to ramp up investments in our U.K. business, but Brexit is posing a problem,” Zalando Co-Chief Executive Officer Rubin Ritter said in a phone interview. “If the new regime limits the flow of goods, it would be a challenge.”

Sainsbury said 1,400 payroll and administrative jobs in its supermarket business may be made obsolete by the introduction of a new information-technology system. It will also ax as many as 600 further human-resources roles due to a restructuring that will consolidate activities among Sainsbury’s supermarkets, home-goods and electronics seller Argos and Sainsbury’s Bank.

Asos on Tuesday reported sales growth in the U.K. decelerated to 16 percent, making it the company’s worst-performing region. That pales in comparison with the 47 percent spurt in its international business. Asos now gets almost two-thirds of its 1.88 billion pounds ($2.49 billion) in annual retail sales outside its home country.

Sainsbury’s latest round of cuts is the largest single amount the grocer has made under Chief Executive Officer Mike Coupe. The London-based retailer is in the final year of its three-year plan to slash costs by 500 million pounds and has said a new three-year plan to cut 500 million pounds of costs will begin next year.

Lifestyle retailer Fat Face will extend its closing times during the festive break and plans to shut 40 stores on Boxing Day, Drapers has learned.

The Boxing Day closures, which take place on the same day its winter Sale period starts, are four times greater than last year’s pilot, when 10 shops shut on the day. The exact store locations are expected to be confirmed next week.

Fat Face boss Anthony Thompson told Drapers it is also closing stores at 2pm on Christmas Eve to prepare for its Sale period, marking the first time the retailer will shut its doors earlier than its high street rivals.

Meanwhile, 210 of Fat Face’s 222 UK stores will close on New Year’s Day. Thompson said that although it has closed some stores on 1 January in previous years, it has “not been done on such scale” before.

The retailer outlined its plans to staff in an internal conference last week.

Thompson said: “We are preparing to go into the season at full price, as we believe customers want price integrity at Christmas.

“Family and price integrity are very important issues to us. We’re taking the opportunity to give time back to both our customers and our teams to spend with their families, as well as reassuring customers they can buy from us with confidence, and get real value with their purchases.”

The retailer has also vowed not to slash prices during discounting extravaganza Black Friday (24 November) and in the lead-up to Christmas again this year.

If any of the retailer’s prices change in the period from 15 November to 23 December, it has said it will refund the difference for customers.

It emerged in January that Fat Face’s stance against discounting before Christmas delivered 7.9% growth on full-price sales for the 54 days to 24 December 2016, compared with the same period in the previous year.

The retailer said in January that it had a record week of full-price sales in the week to Christmas Eve, and had 22% less inventory going into Sale than 2015.

Fat Face also operates six stores in the US, bringing total store count to 228. These will remain open on Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

The firm’s chief executive, Muchiri Wahome, says the move comes after South Africa-based Mr Price Group Ltd approached Deacons with a proposal to purchase the chain of stores.

“The proposed transaction will be subject to various conditions that include requisite approvals from regulatory authorities and the shareholders of Deacons through a shareholders’ meeting to be convened once the sale agreement has been finalized,” said Mr Wahome in a statement yesterday.

Mr Price Group Ltd plans to purchase the Mr Price Home and Mr Price apparel brands which have been operating in Kenya since 2007, effectively ending Deacons’ 10-year franchise deal with the Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed South African company.

The deal, if approved by regulatory authorities, will see the South African firm take over all 11 Mr Price Home and Mr Price apparel stores in Kenya.

The proposed deal comes amid a 12 per cent drop in earnings for the Johannesburg-based firm, marking its first drop in annual profit since 2001 as South African consumers slowed purchases in a struggling economy.

Deacons suffered a similar fate this year after posting a half-year net loss of Sh180 million citing a tough operating environment. Net loss for the period (June 30) deepened by 242.81 per cent as inflation ate into the spending power of consumers amid rising expenses.

Deacons’ principal business is to operate retail establishments including franchise and department stores selling ladies, men’s and children’s clothing, footwear and accessories among other items in East Africa.

Deacons’ exclusive franchise deal with South Africa’s luxury fashion brand Woolworths ended in 2013 after the multinational took full ownership of its Kenyan subsidiary.

“We had a franchise (agreement) then it moved to a joint venture and Woolworths will now be an independent brand run by them (Woolworths Holdings),” said Mr Wahome at the time.

Dubai-based Lulu group launches India’s first Toys”R”Us store in Bengaluru

The store opened to a huge crowd, with the first customer buying toys worth more than Rs. 1 lakh.

Abu Dhabi-based LuLu Group has launched the global retail toy brand Toys“R”Us in India, with the first store being opened in Bangalore, today.

The first store, touted to be an experiential one, has opened at Phoenix Market City, Bangalore and was met with a huge crowd on its opening day. Tablez India, a division of LuLu group, will run the stores.

In India, the brand has launched the store in two formats – Toys“R”Us and Babies“R”Us, a one-stop destination for baby essentials.

The store offers a full range of toys for both boys and girls in the age group 3 to 11 years and will sell everything from action figures to dolls, books, role play kits, remote-controlled cars, blasters, plush, wheel goods and bikes,

On the occasion of the launch of the store, Adeeb Ahamed, Managing Director, Tablez India, said “We are delighted at setting up the first Toys“R”Us store in Bengaluru. India is among the fastest growing market for toys retail and is growing at a rate of 15 to 20% percent annually. We are planning to expand our stores in other parts of the country. We are aiming to have our second store in Delhi by November this year and by end of this financial year we will have two more stores in Chennai and Mumbai.”

Swedish fashion retailer H&M said third-quarter profits were adversely affected by heavy discounting of the retailer’s summer collection, in a bid to boost sales over the warmer months.

The world’s second-largest clothing retailer said net profits fell 20 percent in the three-month period ending August 2017. Net profit in the third quarter fell from SKr4.8bn a year earlier to SKr3.8bn ($470m). Sales increased 5 percent to SKr59.4bn.

Moreover, in the first nine months of its business year, sales rose just 4 per cent in local currencies. The fast-fashion firm’s new annual target is 10-15 per cent growth, according to Karl-Johan Persson, chief executive of the family-controlled group.

Persson told the Financial Times he was hopeful that the company could reach the target next year. “It is an ambitious goal but it’s realistic. We have to be humble not having reached it this year or last. Also it is a challenging market,” he added.

Helping H&M recover, the affordable European retailer – who’s suffered at the hands of online stores Asos and Zalando, as well as cheaper fashion chains such as Primark – plans to close 90 stores globally in 2017. In return, H&M will focus on its e-commerce.

The group said online sales should increase by at least a quarter in 2017. It added that in some markets, online sales already make up 25-30 percent of its revenues.

H&M plans to invest more in online shopping, including giving customers different and faster delivery options and increasing the product range. It is also investing in its supply chain in an attempt to reduce the amount of inventory it holds and cut the time it takes to get products into shops.

H&M recently opened its first shops in Colombia, Iceland, Kazakhstan and Vietnam. It operates more than 380 stores worldwide.

Italian luxury house of Gucci has recently opened a new children’s clothing store in Dubai at the Dubai Mall. The store features Gucci Creative Director Alessandro Michele’s signature style. The store stocks the complete range of products for kids of the brand.

Fitness brand Sweaty Betty has opened its first European flagship at No. 1 Carnaby Street in London. The prominent 204 sq m store is located at the south entrance to Carnaby Street and is the result of the brand upscaling from its existing store on Beak Street where it has been a resident since 2002.

’19 years and over 50 shops later, I’m so excited to introduce our flagship: No. 1 Carnaby. We spent years dreaming up this concept, I have even handpicked all of the partners to ensure they had a similar value and ethos to the Sweaty Betty brand, to live a balanced life that goes beyond fitness,’ says Tamara Hill-Norton, founder of Sweaty Betty.

The shop is arranged over ground and basement floors allowing the brand to expand and offer its full clothing, accessories and equipment collections, as well as housing a studio space for exclusive wellness events, giving a wider customer experience.

‘Our brief was to design a location filled with fashion, food, fitness and beauty, where you could come with your friends do a workout, grab a smoothie bowl, shop and get pampered,’ says a spokesperson on the Sweaty Betty in-house store design team. ‘Design wise we wanted to encourage our customer to spend time in store, bringing the fun side of our brand alive with unexpected touches including neon and graphic illustrations. My favourite example of this is the lockers in The Studio; from the outside they are really minimal and chic, then once you open the door you’ll find a fun feminist quote hand-illustrated by Lo Parkin.’

The design team wanted to stay true to the brand using its signature grey tones and fluoro pops that it has become known for. The space is really industrial, so to take No.1 Carnaby to the next level, the designers used bright neon installations throughout the space inspired by the lights of Soho. In the shop area itself, the shopping experience has been simplified using blackened steel fixtures and touches of marble and concrete.

As the main concept of the space was to create an area where women would come and want to hang out, homely touches were added, including hanging plants, oak furniture and lots of cushions and rugs.

‘In retail spaces designers now have to think, is this Instagrammable? At Sweaty Betty we love motivational quotes, so you will notice these throughout the store; on a mirror, or a big neon, as they are a huge part of our brand. To ensure these stayed true to our look, we used stencilling for a premium, long-lasting finish,’ says the spokesperson.

‘Our visual merchandising in-store has really elevated our retail space, we love telling a story of the collection with a selection of beautiful imagery, typography and at the moment a vase filled with eucalyptus all displayed on a shelf like a collage. You’ll also see this reflected in the windows; to launch our new Power Leggings we’ve got three girls acting out the store through really fun props.’

The café area has a huge communal table and hanging chairs, to encourage customers to sit and enjoy the space. ‘We’ve tried to think of everything, from organic Bamford products in the showers to specially designed cups in Farm Girl to ensure the ultimate customer experience.’

Sweaty Betty joins other recent additions including Urban Decay, G.H. Bass and Estee Edit who have all chosen Carnaby for their first global or UK flagship store.

Saudi jewellery giant L’azurde has announced plans to buy a competitor operating in the affordable luxury sector in the Gulf kingdom.

L’azurde for Jewelry Company said in a statement that the board has approved the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Tamkeen Industrial & Trading Company to acquire 100 percent equity stake of Izdiad Commercial Company of Arabia.

L’azurde, which raised SR477.3 million ($127 million) from its initial public offering in 2016, makes gold and diamond jewellery in Saudi Arabia and Egypt and distributes to wholesale markets in 52 countries, mainly in the Middle East.

The statement said the duration for the MoU is for a period of eight weeks from the signing date, extendable on the parties’ agreement.

It added that the transaction final price is subject to certain conditions and the outcome of the legal, financial and commercial due diligences and signing the final share purchase agreement between the parties.

The transaction is expected to be financed by bank credit facilities and cash generated from operational activities.

Topshop and Topman New Zealand are closing its Auckland and Wellington store after a failed attempt to find a buyer for the fast-fashion retailer.

Topshop and Topman is operated by Top Retail in New Zealand, with the firm entering voluntary administration in early September on the back of consecutive losses.

The UK-based retailer came to New Zealand in 2014, with Kiwi clothing firm Barkers, Christchurch property investor Philip Carter and fashion designer Karen Walker taking the rights to own, develop and operate the brand locally.

Topman/Topshop opened on Auckland’s Queen Street and on Wellington’s Lambton Quay, with plans to add two more stores as well as an online store by the end of the year 2017.

Conor McElhinney and Kare Johnstone of McGrathNicol said in a statement that “after conducting a detailed assessment of the business and following conclusion of a sale process for the business and assets in whole or in part”, the stores would close after 1 October 2017, but could close earlier if they run out of stock, according to local media.

“It is with regret that we have had to inform staff today that the business is unable to continue trading and that Topshop and Topman will no longer have a presence in New Zealand from Sunday,” the receivers said.

“We would like to thank the directors of Top Retail for their support, which has enabled gift cards to be redeemed during the receivership trading period, and staff for their commitment since our appointment.”

Hyundai Department Store announced that it will open COS brand mall at The Hyundai.com.

COS also launched the official online store in Korea. Price at online mall is the same as the offline mall.

COS is a fashion brand that offers a collection of high quality at reasonable prices based on modern and practical design.

Launched in London, UK in 2007, it currently operates stores in 35 countries around the world, including Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Americas, and is being sold online in 20 countries.

In Korea, there are 11 offline stores, including Hyundai Department Store Trade Center and Pangyo Branch.

Hyundai Department Store expects to have more young customers in their 20s and 30s, which are the main target of online shopping, through the launch of the course brand on Hyundai.com.

According to the analysis of the sales by age group of COS in Hyundai Department Store trade center and Pangyo branch, 30s (31.9%) and 20s (28.8%) were ranked first and second respectively.

The official of Hyundai Department Store said, “As competition in online shopping mall gets tougher, sole products that do not sell at other online malls are attracting attention as major competitiveness.”

“We will introduce various brands to offer shopping experiences for customers in the future,” he added.

In the meanwhile, H&M Group’s premium spa brand, & Other Stories, is also in the process of launching an online store. In 2017, & Other Stories opened three stores in Apgujeong, Starfield Hanam and Starfield Goyang in Seoul.

Since & Other Stories launched the first online mall in2013, it is currently operating in 14 countries and Korea becomes 15th online selling country.

The online mall is scheduled to open in Korea this autumn and the date is not yet confirmed.

Luxury retailer Harvey Nichols has confirmed plans to a new store in Doha. The department store group said it has signed a licence agreement with Saleh Al Hamad Al Mana Group to open an outlet in Doha Festival City.

The 7,432 square-metre store is scheduled to open early 2018 and will sell an “exclusive edit” of fashion, homeware and beauty brands. It is the first high-end, international department store to be confirmed as a tenant by Doha Festival City. Upon completion, Doha Festival City Mall will be Qatar’s largest shopping mall with a gross leasable area of some 250,000 square metres.

It will house 550 outlets including 85 restaurants and cafes, the country’s first-of-its-kind Entertainment Zone, which will include VOX Cinemas and a snow park and will feature around 8,000 parking spaces. Phase one of the mall was completed last March and included the construction of Qatar’s first IKEA store.

Primark is set to take over the former BHS store at Centre:MK in Milton Keynes, marking the shopping centre’s largest letting in quarter of a century.

The discount fashion retailer has penned a deal to move into the 75,000sq ft space, a year after BHS vacated the premises.

Of the 160 BHS stores which now stand vacant, only around 40 per cent have been filled as demand for large retail spaces falters.

Brands like Primark and Sports Direct have taken around 25 of the 160, while a further 35 have planning permission or have secured tenants for the near future.

The space will see the former BHS location on Silbury Arcade extended and is set to be handed over to Primark for fitting next year.

Over £60 million has recently been earmarked for investment in the shopping centre in what is being dubbed the “re-imagining an icon strategy”.

Joint owners Hermes Investment Management and AustralianSuper said the letting was a milestone in their rejuvenation strategy, following repeated visitor surveys highlighting Primark as the most requested brand.

Amazon.com is set to buy a 5 percent stake in Indian retailer Shoppers Stop, valued at $27.6 million (1.79 billion-rupee), as the US company steps up efforts to gain ground in the fast-growing consumer market.

Shoppers Stop’s board approved the issuance of 4.4 million shares to a unit of Amazon for 407.78 rupees ($6.28) each, the Mumbai-based company said in an emailed statement late Saturday. As part of the deal, Amazon experience centres – which let customers test out the products available online – will be set up across Shoppers Stop’s network of 80 bricks-and-mortar stores in India.

CEO Jeff Bezos has allocated $5 billion toward Amazon’s expansion in India as it seeks to secure an advantage over local rivals in the South Asian nation. The e-commerce giant has a lot riding in the country after its washout in China, where the dominance of Alibaba Group and other domestic players made Amazon’s entry difficult.

Shoppers Stop, which sells cosmetics to clothing and home appliances at its outlets, will have an exclusive flagship store on Amazon’s Indian site where it will retail its entire portfolio of more than 400 brands, the company said. Shares of Shoppers Stop have gained 45 percent this year and closed at 418.1 rupees on Friday in Mumbai.

The deal will be Amazon’s first investment in a publicly traded retailer in India.

The athletic shoemaker sees strong demand for its style of trainer throughout the region

New Balance, the Boston-based maker of trainers and running shoes, is planning to aggressively expand its presence in the Gulf region, increasing its store count to 50 by 2020, its regional manager has said.

The announcement came as the footwear and athletic clothing manufacturer opened its first flagship store in the Middle East at Dubai Mall.

“The launch of this store is the pinnacle of our progress in the Middle East, but it is also just the start,” said Stuart Henwood, Country Manager for the Middle East and India, New Balance.

Henwood says he has been very encouraged by what he has seen since the store had its soft opening around one month ago.

“This is a prime mall, and for the brand to be in this location is key from a sales perspective and also from a marketing perspective,” he said.

The senior executive, who has previously run the company’s Asian business, refused to confirm how long New Balance had to wait for the highly sought-after retail space (Dubai Mall has a waiting list of years in some cases for brands looking to open stores there), or how much New Balance was paying to be in Dubai Mall.

“It’s an important statement to be here,” Henwood said.

New Balance, founded in 1906 in the United States, currently has 10 stores across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, Henwood said.

“Opening this store in Dubai Mall has encouraged us to open more stores, and working with the Apparel Group has been a big benefit,” he said.

Aggressive push

The Apparel Group is a franchisee partner that operates brands such as Tim Hortons, Tommy Hilfiger, and Nautica, holding exclusive relationships with different malls throughout the region.

“We are always looking at expanding our global footprint, and looking at emerging markets,” Henwood said, in reference to the brand’s aggressive push throughout the Middle East.

“There’s good business to be done here,” he added, noting Saudi Arabia’s large population and the willingness of young people in the Gulf to spend significant amounts of money on shoes.

As a result, Saudi Arabia will see at least one new store open in the next three months in Riyadh, whilst the further 39 that Henwood has touted to arrive in the next three years will be across locations in Saudi, Kuwait, and Egypt among others, according to Henwood.

Microsoft is opening its first UK store in London. RetailWeek first reported that the software giant is in talks to secure a building at Oxford Circus, a popular shopping venue in the heart of London. Microsoft has confirmed that it plans to open a store in London. The building is currently occupied by United Colours of Benetton, but Microsoft is set to sign a 10-year lease on the property in the coming weeks. As has become tradition, Microsoft’s new store is just a few doors away from Apple’s own retail store on Regent Street.

Microsoft has tried to secure locations in the heart of London’s shopping district for years. The company was originally planning to open a store in the UK back in 2013 after registering its own limited company. Microsoft found it difficult to secure the building it wanted, and ultimately shelved its plans to open a store in London. This new deal means the retail location will be the first Microsoft store in the UK and Europe. Microsoft has stores across the US, a few in Canada, and one each in Puerto Rico and Australia.

Max Mara opens redesigned flagship store in New York at Madison Avenue

The opening event of the Max Mara flagship in New York unveiled not only the stunning reimagined space, but saw the release of a special edition mini Whitney Bag. While the bag boasts vibrant, jewel-tone colors and a luxe velvet material, the newly conceptualized store boasts approximately 5,000 square feet in the Victorian-style building located on Madison Avenue and 68th Street.

The refurbished space, designed by Duccio Grassi Architects, highlights the spirit of the Max Mara brand through a manifestation of its Italian heritage and contemporary energy.

British department store chain House of Fraser half-year earnings fell to an 8.6 million pound loss for the 26 weeks to July 29, 2017, down significantly from its EBITDA profit of 900,000 pounds for H1 2016.

House of Fraser’s like-for-like sales and profits for the first half of the year dropped after being heavily disrupted by HoF’s new online platform launch and “significant discounting” of its in-house womenswear labels. Like-for-like sales fell 5.2 percent compared to 2016 and online sales dropped 9.8 percent during the 26 week period following the roll-out of House of Fraser’s 25 million pounds revamped online store in April. Gross profit slipped 5 percent from 207.2 million pounds in H1 2016 to 196.9 million pounds in H1 2017 as HoF cut prices to move old stock.

HoF sees 5 percent decline in profits for H1 2017

However, in spite of the sales and profits hit HoF remains upbeat about achieving growth in its final quarter, as the impacts caused by its new online platform and womenswear ranges were mainly over. House of Fraser’s new ecommerce system is said to be “working well” as “good progress” has been made to recover sale volumes. The department store group announced that it aims to be trading normally by the beginning of its final quarter in its trading update.

HoF also announced that it has completed the launch of its new womenswear in-house labels, which saw five existing womenswear brands dropped and the remaining four relaunched for AW17. The new collections have been “well received” so far, with “initial revenues” exceeding expectations” added the company. In addition, HoF also began its 18 million pound investment scheme in its distribution centre to increase capacity, drive operational efficiencies and improve profitability during the first half of the year.

The department store chain predicts this investment will deliver 5 million pounds of efficiency savings during the second half of the year, increasing to a run rate benefit of 15 million pounds of efficiency savings by the time the project is completed by mid-2018. House of Fraser also opened its first new store in the UK in nine years time during the first half go 2017. Located in Rushden Lakes, the store opened its doors on August 24. HoF also closed a loss-making store in Leicester and aims to shut an additional location in Aylesbury.

“My observations after a few weeks are that since Sanpower acquired the business in 2014 the primary focus has been on stabilising an enterprise that had been starved of investment for many years,” said Alex Williamson, CEO of House of Fraser. “Whether it be refinancing the business, the investment of over 100 million pounds in capital expenditure since the acquisition or a root-and-branch upgrade of the executive team, much has already been done to prepare us for significant transformation.”

“House of Fraser has much to be optimistic about. This is just the start of our journey with several other projects designed to provide additional sales and costs savings as part of the overall Transformation Programme due to commence shortly. I am excited about what lies ahead for the business and I am optimistic for the future. With the support of Sanpower, we are building the right foundations that position us well to deliver on our ambitions for sustainable profit growth.”

However, the retailer said it was optimistic about delivering growth in the final quarter, as the impacts of launching the new online platform and womenswear range were largely behind it.

Chief executive Alex Williamson, who joined the firm earlier this year, said: “My observations after a few weeks are that since Sanpower acquired the business in 2014 the primary focus has been on stabilising an enterprise that had been starved of investment for many years.

“Whether it be refinancing the business, the investment of over £100m in capital expenditure since the acquisition or a root and branch upgrade of the executive team, much has already been done to prepare us for significant transformation.

“And House of Fraser has much to be optimistic about.

“Our new House Brand Womenswear collections for autumn/winter have been launched and our customers’ response to date has been very encouraging.

US retail giant Toys ‘R’ Us filed has for bankruptcy, under a debt load piled on the business in a private-equity buyout a decade ago.

The company listed debt and assets of more than $1bn each in Chapter 11 documents at the US Bankruptcy Court in Richmond, Virginia.

Prior to filing, the chain secured more than $3bn in financing from lenders including a JPMorgan-led bank syndicate and certain existing lenders to fund operations while it restructures, according to a company statement.

The funding is subject to court approval.

US debtor-in-position loans allow a company to tap new lenders who get preferential security, while it goes through Chapter 11, helping the business trade throughout its insolvency process.

Toys ‘R’ Us didn’t announce plans to close stores, and said its locations across the globe would continue normal operations.

“Like any retailer, decisions about any future store closings – and openings – will continue to be made based on what makes the best sense for the business,” a spokesman said.

The bankruptcy filing is the latest blow to a brick-and-mortar retail industry reeling from store closures, sluggish footfall and the rise of Amazon.com.

A dozen big US retailers have filed for creditor protection this year. (Bloomberg)